The U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton telephoned the President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan late Thursday. According to President’s official website Clinton initiated the phone conversation to brief the Armenian leader on President Barack Obama’s Monday talks with the visiting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A U.S. official told that the Turkish-Armenian rapprochement topped the agenda of the talks. “During the phone conversation, Secretary of State Clinton once again emphasized that the United States will continue with its consistent support for a speedy normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey without preconditions,” the presidential office said in a statement. The statement said Sargsyan asked Clinton to express his “gratitude” to Obama for adhering to this position. It also cited him as reaffirming Yerevan’s readiness to press ahead with the normalization process and expressing hope that “the Turkish side will display similar readiness and responsibility.” There was no word on whether the two touched upon the Armenian threats to walk away from the deal. In the course of the conversation, issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict were also discussed. The U.S. State Secretary reiterated her country’s permanent willingness to assist the quick settlement of the process stressing that the U.S. sees the Armenian and Turkish process and the Karabakh issue as two separate problems. President Sargsyan reconfirmed Armenia’s wish to better relations with Turkey and voiced hope that the Turkish side will display a similar desire. Clinton expressed hope that the normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia will conduce to the peace and stability in the region.
